Duty Bound
by Angel Leviathan
Summary: They abandoned Atlantis, yet left her behind, in the hope she could help any who returned.
1. Awakening

Title: Duty Bound

Author: Angel Leviathan

Spoilers: Anything, everything, Season 1.

Season: 1

Disclaimer: Characters, concept, etc of Stargate Atlantis aren't mine.

Notes: No idea where this came from. I'm still getting to grips with the Atlantis things, so I hope this is okay. Just had to get the first part of this out of my head. Please bear in mind I've had no sleep in 48 hours, so I apologise if there are mistakes. Advance warning; most likely going to be Weir/Sheppard in later chapters.

-

So far, she'd had a brilliant morning.

Absolutely brilliant.

Right.

So far she'd already had to try and resolve a dispute over a translation of an ancient text, assure several of her staff that they weren't going to run out of supplies any time soon, and lie through her teeth and assure Carson that she _would_ be along for her medical check-up sometime that week. Honestly.

So, having somebody dash up to her, in her one moment of peace, sitting on the stairs, staring at the 'Gate, and start babbling in an over excited manner was the last thing she needed.

"Okay, woah, woah, slow down," Elizabeth interrupted, "One word at a time."

The man before her caught his breath and exhaled before starting again, barely slower, "You know there are some parts of the city we haven't fully explored yet?"

"…Yes…" she wasn't sure she liked the sound of this.

"Well, earlier this morning, Doctor McKay-"

_Really_ didn't like the sound of this.

"- decided it was time to take a look around. Major Sheppard and Teyla went with him."

"And…?" she pressed.

"Teyla's just returned and is reporting-"

"Doctor Weir," the woman in question walked slowly into view, in a much more dignified manner than the 'messenger'.

"Thank you," Elizabeth nodded a dismissal and turned to greet Teyla, "What's this I hear about an early morning expedition?" she questioned.

"Doctor McKay would not listen to reason. It was only sensible that Major Sheppard and I accompany him," she answered.

"No chocolate for a week for him," the doctor joked, "What's so urgent?"

"We have found someone," Teyla seemed rather proud of this fact.

"Some_one?_" Elizabeth's eyes widened, "Don't you mean some_thing_?" Somehow the latter sounded more appealing…and less dangerous.

"No, Doctor Weir, we have found what appears to be a person of human appearance in some form of clear pod."

She frowned, "…We would have been able to detect any life-signs…are you sure its not some piece of art or something?"

"There are inscriptions on the walls beside the figure. The pod is sealed behind several clear doors," Teyla paused, "…Nobody has dared touch it yet."

_"Well at least he's not that stupid…"_ Weir thought, having had visions of a certain Major going ahead without backup, "So I assume we need a translator…"

"And a medical team," the Athosian insisted.

"A medical team?"

"Do you not wish to rescue this individual? They could be one of the ancestors!"

"All the more reason to _not_ disturb them," she shook her head, "Are you sure this isn't some kind of trick? Surely we would have discovered something like this by now."

"The room was well hidden. And Major Sheppard was the only one able open it to allow access."

Elizabeth sighed; she should have had her main team fitted with collars and bells, "Alright, Teyla. But I'm returning with you."

"As I believed you would," she nodded.

Weir turned and jogged up the stairs, "Get me Doctor Williams and Doctor Beckett," she called, running a hand through her hair. So much for a few minutes peace.

-

When they finally set eyes on the small 'room' Teyla led them to, the scene before her was _not_ what Weir wanted to see, the aforementioned pod empty and her second in command crouched on the floor "What the hell is going on here?" she demanded, running in after Teyla.

"I don't know!" Sheppard insisted, "I just touched the panel and-"

"You touched the panel? I thought we were agreed that nobody should get too close!" Teyla exclaimed.

"I reached out and McKay crashed into me," he tried, looking up at those around him in desperation.

"I did not!" McKay protested

"It doesn't matter!" Sheppard snapped.

What, or rather, who, had previously been inside the now empty pod was lying in John's arms, small figure limp and gasping for breath. The person was clearly female, and, as Teyla had claimed, appeared to be of human form. The doors before the pod had opened and moved the container and its occupant forward, eventually tipping the being into the Major's arms.

"She's just a kid, will somebody do something!?" he shouted.

Beckett was already on the floor beside him, taking the child from his arms and lying her flat on the floor, "What happened?" he asked quietly, as he quickly checked his new patient's airways.

"…I…I don't know, I got too close to the wall, hit the panel…" John shook his head and fell silent.

"Next thing we knew the whole thing lit up and beeped," McKay shrugged.

"It 'beeped'?" Weir echoed.

"It beeped! Wasn't a fancy ringtone or anything, what do you want from me!?"

"We need to get her to the Infirmary," Beckett stood up, carrying the child.

Elizabeth nodded, "Let's go."

"I guess you want me to find out who she is?" Doctor Williams stared after the girl for a moment, before turning her attention to the glowing symbols on the wall. The young woman tucked a stray strand of brown hair behind her ear and peered more closely at the 'text'.

"Teyla, stay with her," she called after her, following Beckett from the room, "McKay, Major," continued, "You're with us."

McKay followed immediately, whilst Sheppard still appeared stunned, still crouching on the floor.

"Major!" Elizabeth called again, "John!"

He looked up, stood, and broke into a jog to catch up, "…I didn't mean…I mean…is she…"

"She's in good hands."

-

"She's not human."

"Excuse me?" Weir frowned.

"She's not human," Beckett repeated, glancing down at the now sleeping child, "…She displays all the signs, from her mind to her body chemistry, of being of the Ancient race."

"…But they fled here…" McKay began, "…Why-"

"Why abandon a child?" Sheppard finished.

"Exactly."

"Why leave a little girl in the depths of Atlantis?" Elizabeth reached out to sweep a stray lock of hair from the child's eyes, nearly snatching her hand back as the girl moved with surprising speed, to lock her hand around Weir's wrist.

"…Mother…?" dark blue eyes opened, disappointment instantly registering as the girl realised that the woman looking down at her wasn't her mother.

"Hello?" Beckett said softly, "…Do you know where you are?"

"I'm home."

"Can you tell me your name?"

She paused in thought, eyes narrowing in frustration as she came up with a blank, "…I…don't know…why don't I know…I have a name…I must have a name…" her eyes fell shut as she lost the battle for consciousness, hand still curled around Elizabeth's wrist.

John smiled, "Looks like you've made a friend there."

Weir's glared at him for a moment, before she shook her head, "You're telling me this girl's an Ancient?"

"Every piece of equipment I have says so," Carson nodded, "What I don't understand is how she can talk so soon. The Ancient woman SG-1 found wasn't able to communicate well…"

"She was frozen in ice," Mckay commented, "This girl was found in her own technology."

"True. There's just one other thing…"

"What?" Sheppard asked.

"Something in her genetic makeup-"

"What's going on? Heard here was a panic," Ford strode into the infirmary, halting at the sight of the child, "…Since when do we have kids in Atlantis? Althosian stowaway?"

"See, this is what happens when you don't get up in the morning," John smirked.

"As I was saying," Beckett continued, "Something in her genetic makeup is different to that of your average ancient, or human. I can't quite figure it out yet…but it looks like she's going to age a lot faster than a normal child. Maybe even in just a matter of days…"

"You're kidding."

"No, Major, I wish I were."

"So we've got a Ancient child who's going to age far too rapidly just left here?" McKay glanced from person to person, "I mean, maybe she didn't have any friends or something, but this is just a little creepy."

"…Well, what are we going to do with her? She doesn't know who she is and we can't tell her…" Elizabeth sighed.

The four men present all regarded her with a certain 'look' that made her all too uneasy…

"Oh no," she shook her head, holding up the hand that wasn't linked to the child, "I am _not_ playing mother to an Ancient child. I _can't!_"

John grinned, "But she _likes_ you."

"If you were standing here she would've grabbed you!"

"But she didn't."

"Major, I cannot look after this child and run-"

"Don't you want to be a mother someday?"

She glared, "That's not the point."

"Can't hurt to try, can it?" he goaded.

"Congratulations, Elizabeth," McKay took the opportunity to escape before he was made to have anything to do with the girl.

"Just a temporary arrangement, Doctor," Beckett proposed, "For the girl's sake."

"She's all alone, with no family, no memories…" John began.

"Alright!" Elizabeth snapped, "You win."

He grinned, again, "Thought we might."

-


	2. Terentia

Notes: Thank you for the kind reviews! To be honest I thought I was going to be told to shove off with this fic.

-

"I hear you've been able to translate some of the text around the alcove?" Weir questioned, looking up at Doctor Williams as she entered the briefing late, mumbling her apologies.

The young woman nodded and sat beside Teyla, "I requested Doctor Beckett give me all the information he had on the child, to see if I could set it in context. I'll admit it makes a little more sense than before, but not a great deal."

"What've we got?" John asked.

Williams read from one of the many sheets of paper she had brought with her, "'Here lies Terentia; Guardian of Atlantis. May she offer protection to those who follow us, as she could not to our race. Her time is short, yet she holds all we are. She alone will know what must be done.'"

"…That explains the marker then…" McKay was the first to speak, "If we're taking 'time is short' to mean an accelerated ageing process."

Teyla frowned, "…Are we to believe this girl is some form of weapon?"

"'Guardian' of Atlantis," Elizabeth replied, "…Though we can't rule that out completely."

"I'm still working on the rest," Williams sighed, "…Though I've never seen those symbols before. For all I know they could just be decoration."

"Good work," she nodded, "At least we 'know' why she's here now."

"Still here," John corrected.

"Well, what're we going to do with her? If you guys are saying she can't remember anything, what can we do? And what if she _is_ a weapon?" Ford shrugged helplessly.

"Wait and assume she remembers something?" McKay proposed, "Its not like we can hook her up to a computer and download or anything," he paused, "…actually, maybe that's a good-"

"She's a _child_, Rodney, not a database," Weir shot back.

"Just a suggestion."

"If she really is of the ancestors then should she not possess other abilities that make her unique?" Teyla attempted to steer the conversation in another direction.

"…'Guardian of Atlantis'…" Williams said softly.

"Doctor?" Sheppard frowned.

She exhaled slowly, "…If we're to believe this girl is the 'Guardian of Atlantis' and, 'holds all' that they were…there's got to be more to her than just of the Ancient race. I don't like being the one to suggest it, but if a child was left to guard their city…she has to be stronger than just any old member of the Ancients."

"Yeah, but she's like a blank slate," Ford protested.

"And could most likely destroy the whole city with an errant thought if we go with what Williams is saying," McKay added.

"We know the Ancients had extraordinary abilities, but there's nothing to suggest she could accidentally destroy herself, and us. What I'm saying is she has to be different. Otherwise why not leave a random member of their race here? And why the genetic manipulation?" the Doctor sounded rather exasperated.

"I say we get to know her. Teach her about us. Maybe in the process she'll remember about herself," John glanced around the table for any objections, "Her name's Terentia, right?"

Williams nodded, "In the context, it's her name. Though the name is somehow a offshoot of ancient Greek."

"Goa'uld for Egyptian, Ancients for Greek," Ford suggested.

"Terentia," Weir nodded and stood, "If you'll all excuse me, I'd better go check on my latest designated charge," she shot Sheppard a mock glare as she passed by him and left the room.

As everybody stared at him, he grinned, "She loves it really."

-

"Ah, you're awake now," Elizabeth smiled as she caught sight of the girl sitting up in her bed, propped up by several pillows.

Blue eyes framed by light brown hair gazed innocently back at her, "…Yes…" she answered, uncertainly.

"How is she, Doctor?" she took a seat by the bed, calling across to Beckett.

"She could do with some more rest, but otherwise she seems perfectly healthy," Carson approached the bedside, "aside from loss of memories, of course," he ruffled the girl's hair as if she were just another human patient, making her smile shyly.

"Well," Elizabeth began, leaning across and resting her elbows on the bed, "We found out your name," she smiled, "Its very pretty. Do you remember yet or do you want me to tell you?"

The girl shut her eyes, "…I don't remember. I can see images and hear muffled sounds…but nothing else…" she opened her eyes, "Please tell me," she sounded desperate to reclaim even just that small part of her destiny.

"You were given the name 'Terentia'."

"How about 'Tia'?" a familiar male voice echoed across the small Infirmary.

Elizabeth twisted in her chair, "Major Sheppard."

"Just thought I'd come and check up on you," John took a seat on the other side of the bed.

"Well, you have your name," Beckett reassured the child, "It's a good start," he smiled, "If you'll all excuse me," he returned to his previous task, still checking the scans and tests he'd already run.

"Terentia," the girl nodded, "If it is my name then it what I must be called."

"That's generally the use of names," he couldn't help but grin.

Terentia glanced across at him, "…'Tia' is an acceptable compromise."

"I'm Elizabeth," Weir began.

"You were here when I woke up," Terentia frowned, "…Yes, it was you," she looked back at Sheppard, "…So were you…"

"I'm John."

She looked most confused, "…Your names are not like mine…"

Elizabeth shook her head, "No, they have a different origin, but most likely the same single language."

"You speak only one language?"

John shook his head, "Well, there are people like me who only know inappropriate words in other languages," he ignored the glare Weir shot him, "and people like Elizabeth here who can speak several in their sleep."

She let it drop, knowing he was teasing her to get a reaction, "Your people knew many languages?"

Terentia shifted and made the effort to sit up without the aid of the pillows, "…I think so…I…don't remember…I don't understand some of the voices I can remember…" she looked around, eyes resting on one piece of equipment, then another, "Must I stay here?"

"Its universal; kids don't like hospitals," John commented.

"May our newest addition leave, Doctor?" Weir called.

Carson looked up from his work, "Aye, that she might. But any signs of trouble and she's to be straight back here, understand?"

"Wait," John held up a hand, "…We don't have any clothes to fit kids…and you can't live in a hospital gown…" he glanced at Terentia, then at Elizabeth.

The latter pondered this, "…Well…I can't sew or anything…"

"We're stealing a duvet for now, Doc," John wrapped the blanket around the shocked child, sweeping her into his arms in one motion, "Can't have her getting cold."

"I'll see if I can find somebody good with a needle an' thread," Beckett replied.

"Lead on, Mom."

Elizabeth stared, "Don't you dare," she warned. She addressed Terentia, "Well, Tia, you want to see where you're going to live? You've got your own room."

The girl nodded, "…I should like to see it…"

-

An hour later and Terentia was safely tucked up in bed in her new 'home', Elizabeth perched on the side of her bed. Sheppard had taken his leave as soon as he saw the girl was evidently going to get settled, unafraid, making a joke about mother-daughter bonding that had earned him another glare from Weir.

"…I'm sorry we don't have any books or toys," Elizabeth began, "We didn't expect to have children with us on this mission. The Athosian children took what entertainment they had with them…"

Tia shook her head, "Its okay. …I don't know if I even know how to…'play'…"

She smiled, "Every child knows how to play, whatever race. And if you can't remember, I'm sure somebody will jog your memory."

"…I am hopeful that I will reclaim my memories."

"We'll help you," Elizabeth smoothed the child's hair away from her face, "You comfortable?"

"Yes," Terentia tried a smile, "…I am curious…you are not of my race…yet you have claimed our city…"

"That's a long story."

"If it is a story then I should like to hear it."

A smile passed across Weir's face; if she didn't know better, she would've thought she was asking for a bedtime story. So she gave in, drew the covers more closely around Tia, and began.

-


	3. Learning

Notes: Sorry, its been a while. Also, sorry for any mistakes, its 5am. Thanks for reviewing!

-

Elizabeth was finally able to leave the room that had been converted to quarters for Terentia when the girl fell asleep, almost stubbornly clinging to consciousness for far longer than Weir had expected. Then again, she mused, the girl had spent the day, and several thousand years, sleeping. On exiting the child's quarters, she turned and immediately almost crashed into Sheppard.

He winced, grabbing her shoulder to keep them both standing, "Sorry about that."

"What're you doing here?" she questioned.

"You know, I might just think you want to get rid of me…"

"John…" she frowned.

"Alright, I was just heading here to see how Tia was doing," he shrugged.

Elizabeth began to walk away, speaking as he fell into step with her, "…You shouldn't get attached to her…"

"So says 'Mom'," he countered.

"I mean it, John," she stressed, "We know hardly anything about her. With the genetic manipulation…anything could happen to her…"

"Hey, don't give me the speech about not getting emotionally involved. I'm the military man, its supposed to be my job. And don't you tell _me_ not to get attached; I saw the look in your eyes when we took her to her new home."

She glared at him for a moment, dropping her gaze to the floor, "…I'm not cut out to play mother."

"I think you're better at it than you know," John tried.

"I've been with her for less than a day-"

"And you just spent several hours with her, only leaving her when she was asleep, I presume?"

Elizabeth took the steps to the control room two at a time, "You don't just leave a frightened child like that."

"There you go. There's Mom."

"I-"

"Permission to take a puddle jumper out early tomorrow morning?" he quickly changed the subject.

"Why…?" she frowned.

"I have a plan."

"Involving?"

"Involving getting Tia some company," John grinned.

Figuring there wasn't much he could get up to that would involve getting the child some company, she nodded, "Alright…"

"Thanks," John yawned and over-acted stretching, "Well, if nobody objects, I'm off to get some sleep."

"Go for it…" she was still frowning at him.

"What?" he just grinned back at her.

"Don't get in any trouble tomorrow morning," Elizabeth pointed and prodded his shoulder, "You hear?"

"Would I?" he feigned innocence.

"Yes. Frequently."

-

Amelia Williams yawned and once _again_ glanced back at her laptop for a reference, scrawling something down on a piece of paper at the same time.

"I've been telling you for years you work too much…" a disgruntled voice interrupted her train of thought, "…But was that any reason for you to drag me out of bed at this horrific hour?"

Amelia looked up to see one of her friends standing over her, "I dragged you out of bed because I need your help, Louise."

"Why do you need me…?" Louise practically collapsed to the floor beside her, dragging blonde hair from her eyes, "You're translating the stuff on the wall where the kid came from…"

"Ancient kid, at that."

"I don't think there's anyone here who doesn't know that. Anyway, me, sleep, interrupted, why?"

"I can't figure out some of this," Amelia tapped the screen of the laptop with her pen, then gestured toward the inscriptions on the wall, "and you know Ancient too."

"Not as much as you, and you studied with Doctor Jackson," Louise protested.

"Any help is help," the Doctor insisted, "Even just if your mind works in a different way to mine. Though we already know _that_," she goaded.

"…If I'd had more sleep I'd make an attempt at a return insult…" Louise turned her attention to the inscriptions, "Well, you know the sentence is negative, right?"

"What?"

"Its negative. Look," she pointed to the 'word' second to last in the line, "That much I know."

Williams glanced back at the laptop, "…I didn't notice-"

"That's what staring at it for hours does to you," Louse shifted as if she might stand, "It took me long enough to find you down here, let alone with directions. Can I go back to bed now?"

"No," she grabbed her arm as she stood, hauling her back to the ground, "You're staying right here."

The young woman's knees met the ground with an unhealthy crack, her eyes closed in a sudden grimace of pain, "One day you're going to pay for this…"

"Uh-huh…" Amelia was again engrossed in her translation.

-

The next morning, Elizabeth hit the control to allow her into Terentia's room, a mug of hot-chocolate in her hands, "Tia, you feeling okay this morn-" she stopped dead as the discovered the girl wasn't in the bed, "Tia?" she repeated, stepping forward and placing the mug down on what had been turned into a make-shift bedside table, "Terentia?" the room was so small the girl couldn't exactly be hiding anywhere. She adjusted the small microphone she had hooked round her ear, "Control room, this is Weir. The Ancient child, Terentia, is missing from her room. I repeat the child is missing."

A few moments of panic later, she got a reply, _"Doctor Weir? Major Sheppard was seen with the girl around an hour ago…"_

"He was?"

"Several Athosians are also present in Atlantis. He, and they, are currently occupying one of the larger recreational rooms."

"…He went to the mainland…" Elizabeth muttered.

"Doctor?"

"Never mind. Thank you," she shut off the communication and strode from the room, determined to have words with a certain Major.

-

When she finally located John Sheppard, anger and relief for her young charge fighting for dominance, she couldn't bring herself to shout at him, as she had intended to, when she took in the scene before her.

Terentia, dressed in dark clothes that appeared to be of Athosian manufacture, was running around the large room, chasing, and being chased, by several Athosian children of varying ages. The girl was laughing, out of breath, as she ran, oblivious to the audience of the parents of the children, and her own guardian.

Elizabeth smiled despite herself, momentarily glaring up at Sheppard, "Next time you see fit to abduct-"

"'Abduct' is a harsh word…"

"Kidnap-"

"I prefer 'abduct'," John decided. He shook his head, "I'm sorry, I should've told you. But the kids wanted to meet her and I thought we should teach her how to be a normal child as soon as possible."

"'We'?" Elizabeth raised an eyebrow. About to continue, she was interrupted as Terentia ran up to her, hair mussed and red in the face, still out of breath.

"Mama-Elizabeth! You're here!"

Too stunned at the prefix to her name to respond, she knelt beside the girl, "I…yes. You having fun?"

She nodded enthusiastically, "John said you wouldn't mind if I went with him."

"Oh he did, did he?" she shot him a look of mock anger.

Terentia smiled, "I thought I was to be the only child!"

"We'll see if we can get the gang to visit regularly," John grinned.

"Tia! You're it!" an older boy shouted across to her.

"I Am not!" but the Ancient girl laughed and ran back into the group.

Elizabeth stood, frowning, "…She looks older already…"

"Well, they say they grow up overnight…" John replied.

She folded her arms, "You know what I mean."

"Yeah…must be the genetics…" he grinned, "and look at you, 'Mama-Elizabeth'."

"Did you encourage that?" she accused, eyes tracking Terentia's movements.

"Nope. That was all Tia. I'm as shocked as you are."

"Really…"

-

On returning to Atlantis, the leader of the expedition's third team evidently wasn't in the mood for small talk, "Get me Doctor Weir, _now,"_ he demanded.

"Why?" one of the control room staff questioned, leaning over the railings.

"You want to know? You really want to know?" the major was clearly shaken, "The Wraith are headed to this part of the galaxy. _Now_ will you get Doctor Weir?"

-


	4. Right and Wrong

Notes: Apologies for lack of updates for anyone who's still reading. Exams and so forth. Fun fun. This rambled on a bit, but hope you enjoy all the same.

-

"Weir here," Elizabeth nodded to John to take care of Tia as she slipped out of the room, "What's going on?"

"We have some bad news. Please report to the command centre, Doctor."

"I'll be right there," she shut off her mic and stepped back into the recreation room, "John I-"

"I'll look after her," Sheppard interrupted, "She's no trouble."

"No, you should come with me. I don't like the sound of whatever's going on. They wouldn't tell me through the communications system."

He nodded and turned back to the children, "Tia!" he called.

The girl skidded to a halt, the child chasing her nearly crashing into her. She frowned, seeing the expression on his face, almost identical to that of Elizabeth. Terentia slowly walked toward them, "…What is it, John…?" she asked quietly.

"Elizabeth and I have to take care of something. We'll get someone to take care of you for a while, but you have to come back to your room now, understand?" he knelt to her level.

She nodded slowly, not understanding what it was that was bothering the two adults. She looked up at Elizabeth for a second opinion and met with the same gaze; almost as if they had both suddenly shut themselves off from her. She didn't like it. Terentia nodded again and took Weir's hand as she offered it to her, and reached back for John's as he stood up.

"Hey," he turned back to the Athosians, "Sorry, we gotta sort something out, feel free to head to the commissary and grab something to eat. I'll take you home when you're ready," he waited for a murmur of approval before he shot their allies a weak smile and the three of them left the room, "…What do you think it is?" John asked quietly as they headed down the corridor.

"I don't know," Elizabeth replied, clearly troubled, "Dune's team was due back now. It must have something to do with that."

"And they couldn't tell you over the comm systems?"

"Maybe its medical…"

"…Why are you so scared…?" Terentia whispered, looking up at them.

"I'm not scared," Elizabeth answered, trying to reassure her.

"Everything's going to be fine," he added.

"You _are_ scared," the child insisted, "both of you."

She stopped and looked down at Terentia, "We're fine, you don't have to worry about anything," she tried a smile.

"Wait, wait," John frowned, "What do you mean by we're afraid?"

"…I can feel it…" Terentia replied softly, eyes wide.

"What do you mean?" Elizabeth knelt beside her.

"…I mean…I…I mean, I can feel it…inside me…" she tilted her head and stared at her guardian for a moment, "…Now you're worried…"

Weir glanced up at Sheppard, "…Empathy…?" she uttered.

He shrugged helplessly, "We know the Ancients used more of their minds that we can, with greater skill…"

"Tia, do you remember what your people could do?" she questioned the girl.

Terentia closed her eyes and concentrated, "…Not everybody could do what others could…some were more advanced than others…I don't know…the one who cared for me just said I was different…that's all I have…his words whilst he…scans me with something…?"

"'She holds all we are'," John said aloud.

"Have I done something wrong?"

"No, no, of course not," Elizabeth wrapped her arms around her and gave her a brief hug, before she stood again, "We have to get moving."

"What about Tia?" Sheppard asked as they quickened their pace, entering the corridor of the main quarters.

"Maybe she'll have to come with-"

"Carson!" John shouted ahead as he caught sight of the doctor, "Medical emergency?"

"You better bloody well be kidding me," Beckett answered, "Why do you ask?"

"Doesn't matter," Elizabeth shook her head, "Carson, could you take care of Tia for a while? We're needed in the command centre."

"Aye," he agreed, "I'll take care of the wee girl."

"Tia, go with Carson, okay?" she took Terentia's hand from hers and placed it in Beckett's, "Let's go," she stated to John.

"We'll be back soon, okay?" he ruffled her hair and took off after Weir.

Terentia stared after them for a moment, eyes narrowed in concern.

"You like chocolate?" Carson asked her, smiling.

"Chocolate?

"My girl, you've been missing out…"

-

"What's going on?" Elizabeth demanded as she and John entered what had become the briefing room.

"Wraith ships are headed to this part of the galaxy, Ma'am," the dark haired leader of another exploration team stated, a little too quickly.

"What?"

"Tell me you're joking," Sheppard stared.

"No, Sir," he shook his head, "Planet we were on had some surprisingly powerful sensors, and if what we saw weren't hive ships, I don't want to know what they were. Unfortunately the people there just think they can hop planet and escape, the way they've escaped the culling before."

"That's ridiculous!" McKay exclaimed, "What, do they think they can keep running forever?"

"Its worked so far."

"But-"

"Gentlemen!" Weir raised her voice, "If they believe that will save them then we have no right to persuade them otherwise, especially if the Wraith are headed here anyway," she sat down, "How many ships?"

"Two," Dune remained standing, "And if they're headed for Atlantis, hell, we _know_ they're headed for Atlantis, we have little to no defence against-"

"Will someone shut this guy up?" Ford muttered.

"Lieutenant!"

"Major! Your attitude is not helping!" the younger man snapped.

"Alright! Cut it out!" John shouted, "Just quit it!"

"We can't allow the Wraith to take Atlantis. From here they can reach Earth. I, for one, say we fight," Elizabeth said.

He just stared at her in what she presumed was shock.

"Yes, Major, I'm saying we fight. You want to abandon and destroy Atlantis and say we never tried to protect it?"

"Hell no," Sheppard replied, "I, er…just didn't think you'd…"

"What about the girl?" McKay questioned.

"Tia?"

"So called 'Guardian of Atlantis'."

"And what would you be saying if we hadn't awakened her by accident?" John shot at him.

"Get our forces together but know when to quit."

"So you're suggesting we throw a little girl out there and hope she knows what to do?" Elizabeth frowned.

"You're all thinking it. I'm just saying it," McKay shrugged slightly. He sighed, "Look, if she's of the Ancient race and genetically enhanced, said to be the 'Guardian', what else are we supposed to think?"

"I'm not asking or depending on a child to protect Atlantis," she glared.

"Who is to say that she will still be a child when the Wraith arrive here?" Teyla's voice at the door interrupted them, "I have just see the girl with Doctor Beckett. Already she appears older than when we first discovered her."

"So we just wait and hope that Tia grows up enough, grows into whatever she can do, so she can fulfil her purpose?" John asked.

"I am as much against sending a child into war as you are, Major," she replied, "But if it is true that Terentia is of the ancestors, then she most likely holds more power than anything we could throw at the Wraith. If she is Atlantis' guardian then we must trust that the ancestors knew what they were doing."

"…Excuse me if I'm a little less optimistic on that front…" Ford uttered.

"We assume the Wraith are intend on taking Atlantis and assume we intend to fight them for it. I want options; defensive, offensive, and all out destruction if it comes to that," Elizabeth stood, "and in the meantime, we see if Terentia becomes the guardian she is said to be. Understood?"

A series of hesitant nods and 'yes''s met her ears as she strode from the room, halting at the door, "You're dismissed. Get to work. If you'll excuse me, I'll be with the little girl you want to fight for us," she glared coldly back at them before heading off again.

_"…You shouldn't get attached to her…"_ John sighed, hearing her words in his mind_, "…Maybe you should remember that too, Elizabeth…" _

_-_

He found her late into the night in Terentia's quarters, files stacked untidily beside her chair, pen still in her hand as she sat slumped forward in her chair, head resting on the bed in front of her, both Terentia and Elizabeth fast asleep. John had spent the rest of the day, after returning the Athosiansto the mainland,searching for the options she wanted, the files at her feet evidently the multiple plans that had been handed through the chain. He smiled and leant against the wall, content simply to watch her for a moment, relief that she was sleeping warring with worry that she had pushed herself too far. And today was just the first day of what he knew would be possibly weeks of planning and preparation. It had been estimated that it would take two weeks for the ships to reach Atlantis. Two weeks. John sighed, eyes resting on Terentia. Would the girl really become abeing capable of defending her people's home in a mere two weeks?

Elizabeth stirred, stretching, and smiled sleepily when she caught him staring, "Didn't have you down as the lurking in corners type," she joked.

"Well I didn't have you down as the 'let's kick the Wraith's collective assess' type either," he grinned.

She yawned again, stopping her from replying.

"Come on, Liz, I think its time you got some proper sleep."

"…Don't call me that…" she weakly protested.

"Sorry, Liz, but you need sleep," he continued.

"Quit it."

"Nope."

Elizabeth stood up, bending down to pick up her files, "Quiet, you'll wake her," she used her free hand to shift the covers up around Terentia, smiling down at her for a moment.

"Well, if you didn't argue," his voice was soft, "Get some sleep."

She passed by him on her way to the door, waiting for him to follow. She paused to check the doors closed safely behind them before she continued down the corridor to her own quarters. As she came to a stop, John swiped the files from her hands.

"Hey!"

"Get some sleep," he repeated.

"You can't order me around," Elizabeth folded her arms across her chest.

"Yes, I can," he frowned, "No, wait, I think I just did. Sleep. Now," he insisted.

She hit the door release for her quarters, "You're infuriating, John Sheppard," she stepped forward on her tip-toes to kiss him on the cheek, "Sweet, but infuriating," she stepped back and inside her room, "Goodnight."

John was left staring at the closed door, stunned, before he grinned and made his way back to his own quarters.

-


	5. No Moral Standards

**Notes:** Sorry, its been ages since I updated this. Distractions and work and other fic, etc, etc.

* * *

Elizabeth woke the next morning to get one hell of a shock when she visited Terentia. Instead of the nine year old girl she had left sleeping, a clearly older, and taller, girl stared back at her when she opened the door. 

Terentia was clearly as stunned as she was, for she had been staring at her reflection in the one mirror of the room, eyes wide. Now her dark blonde hair fell to just below her shoulders, in an unkempt state, as if it were full of static. She had the sheet from the bed wrapped around her, for lack of finding any other suitable clothing in the room.

"…Tia?" Weir frowned as the door slid shut behind her, "…Tia?"

The girl nodded, trying to form some sort of response, "…I…I mean…what…I suppose…this is…_me?_"

"…What happened?"

"I don't know!"

"What do you remember?" Elizabeth sat down on the edge of the bed.

"I don't know!" she exclaimed again, "I went to sleep and woke up like this!" Terentia paused, "…You were there when I went to sleep…what did you see?"

"When I left you were as we both know you were yesterday," she studied the girl for a moment. She seemed to be around her very early teens, or so her height and appearance suggested. Elizabeth had never spent a great deal of time around children; she could still be preteen for all she knew. And what about her mind? Did that develop with her 'age'? What she had seen so far was certainly not the mentality of the young girl they had awakened a couple of days ago, "…We'd better get you to Doctor Beckett…" she started for the door.

"Erm…Elizabeth?" Terentia was still shy using her name.

"Tia?"

"…Could you get me some clothes first?"

* * *

Half an hour later, after borrowing some clothes from one of the more petite women of the Atlantis mission, Weir and Terentia were present in the Infirmary, unintentionally confusing Carson rather more than he would have liked for such a time in the morning. 

"Any ideas?" Beckett addressed the young girl.

"Me?"

"You."

"…I don't know anything…I just woke up like this…I didn't feel anything happen or any pain…or…anything…" she trailed off.

"Do you remember anything more about before you were sealed away?"

Terentia shook her head and looked down, "…Nothing. Just being scanned. I can see the city…and somehow I can see it from…from above…" she frowned and looked back up, "…I don't know."

Carson ruffled her hair, "Don't worry about it, lass. We'll make more progress when its time for you."

"Can we keep expecting these growth spurts?" Elizabeth asked.

He was as clueless as she, "I honestly can't tell you. If its part of her make-up, then yes. But I still don't have the means to predict them, or her rate of growth. It could happen again, like this, four years in three days, or it could slow down. It could be less sudden," he shrugged, "I can't say."

"…Four years…so Tia's thirteen now?"

"Aye, I'd say around thirteen."

Elizabeth nodded. She had been terrified she would be sending a child into a battle, in the hopes that she would single-handedly win it for them. A child who had no idea what or why she was performing such a task. If it had come down to it, she knew she would have outright refused to do so, and taken her with them if they had been forced to evacuate. But now…just under two weeks…if she remembered everything…and grew to adulthood…

"What about her mind?" she turned to Tia, "How do you feel?"

The girl swung her legs, "…I don't really know…I don't have the urge to run around screaming like I did the other day…though that was a lot of fun…" she smiled as she remembered. Her face fell, "…The ones I made friends with aren't going to like me anymore…"

"Why do you say that?" Carson frowned.

"…I'm older than they are…"

"Age is no boundary," Elizabeth slipped an arm around Terentia's shoulder for a moment and held her, "And you're only as old as you feel," she would have made a derogatory comment to herself about such a cliché, if only it weren't so true in this case.

"Hey guys, was told you were-" John's voice was heard across the room as he stopped dead, frowning, "Woah…"

Terentia turned to look over her shoulder at him, "John!"

"Tia?"

"Yes…" she nodded, for the moment very much still a small child, needing reassurance.

"You're…erm…different…"

"…Is that bad…?"

He walked to stand beside the bed, looking out from behind Elizabeth and the Ancient child, between their shoulders, "Not at all," he gently pulled on several strands of her now darker, and longer, hair, "Like the hair," he teased.

Terentia giggled and reclaimed the strands, "Thanks."

"Anyway, no time for questions," John began, "Carson, you think you can take care of Tia for a while?"  
"Aye, but why exactly?"

"Elizabeth and I are needed in a meeting," he lied.

Weir hopped down from the bed, "You okay with that, Tia?"

Terentia nodded, "Doctor Beckett said he would tell me more about his country if we had the time. Now we do," she smiled.

"I think we'll get on just grand," Carson agreed.

"I'll be back as soon as I can," Elizabeth assured them as she followed John from the Infirmary. As soon as they were out of earshot, she began asking questions, "What meeting? There isn't one scheduled for this morning. Its this afternoon; I wanted to give people the time to sleep before we get working on attack and defence solutions again."

"Williams and Horrill finished the translation, together," John explained, "Even if they were more than cranky by the time they were done. Its about Tia."

"As we suspected," they crossed through the command centre and headed toward her office.

"…Its not good news…" he said quietly as the door slid open.

Elizabeth nodded, not sure she wanted him to continue, and sat down behind her desk, whilst he sat opposite her, "…Go on…"

"She's a weapon."

"She's a weapon?" she frowned, "And?"

"That's it."

"That's _it_?" she was stunned, "What do you mean?"

"That's her only purpose. Defend Atlantis at all costs. Even her life. She's like one hell of a scientific experiment. It was their last attempt, only they didn't have time to 'deploy' her, as it was. So they left her behind. The Ancients didn't even know what she was truly capable of," John answered, clearly distressed by the concept.

"So what are we supposed to do?" she despaired.

"When they translated it, Williams and Horrill said that it stated that Terentia had every ability every Ancient ever had. Every mental abnormality that led to an innate ability, every genetic trait for strength, advanced abilities, _anything._ They quite literally just threw her genetic make-up together and hoped it would all come out as some form of super weapon. But the Wraith got here before they could 'test' her. That's why they sealed her away and left the inscription. They sealed her away because they had no idea, no more than we do. They just hoped they'd made something that would defend their city."

"Some_one_!" Elizabeth insisted, "I'm starting to wonder if these Ancients had _any_ moral or ethical standards!"

"You and me both," John assured her. He reached across the desk to cover one of her hands with his, "Elizabeth, we have to make a decision…"

She stared back at him with a horrified gaze, "…We can't just…she's not just some experiment! She's a human being-"

"She's an Ancient…"

"Alright, she's an Ancient! But what do we do?"

He shrugged, "…She could quite literally develop into anything. She could die and never achieve what she was supposed to. She could discharge some massive amount of energy and destroy us all unintentionally…she could drop dead tomorrow…"

"…Oh god…" she uttered softly, "…Oh god…I can't…I mean…one morning I could go to her room and find her dead?"

John nodded, expression grim.

"…And we have to tell her everything…"

"…Yes…"

Elizabeth looked away, drawing her hand away and leaning back, "…I feel sick…" she admitted, voice barely above a whisper.

"We have to tell her…and we have to let her fulfil whatever task she has…we may not have a choice in the matter…" he sighed, "…I'm sorry, Elizabeth, we should never have proposed you become a form of mother to her…"

"…I'd feel the same even if I wasn't…" she looked back at him, "Help me?"  
"Me?"

"I think we can safely say she thinks of you as some sort of father. I don't see her reacting to Carson like she does to you."

John paused before he replied, "I'd help you even if you didn't ask."

Her smiled was weak, "Thank you," she stood up and crossed the room, headed for the door.

"Elizabeth?" he followed her and caught her arm, "…As much as this sickens me to say…we may have to make some decisions as to whether we _let_ her live…"

She looked away, "I don't even want to think about that yet…"

He looped an arm around her waist, fully aware that the command centre could see them, and for a moment didn't give a damn. John remained silent and rested his head on her shoulder as she leant back against him.

"…Let's go talk to Tia…"


	6. Misfiring

"…I'm a what?" Terentia sat rigidly straight on the bed she was perched on, hands suddenly gripping the edge of the mattress tightly, knuckles white. Nothing about her facial expression betrayed her, however, and she just stared, almost disinterested, gaze taking them all in and yet seeing nothing at the same time.

"…A weapon…" Elizabeth repeated softly, "…You are the guardian of this city and your people stated that you were…are…a weapon…" she stared at the floor, not quite able to meet the girl's gaze.

"But…but…" she snapped out of her trance, "I can't do anything!" she exclaimed, "I can't do anything!" she repeated.

John sat down beside her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, "…You said you could sense what we were feeling before…"

Terentia closed her eyes, concentrating. She gave up after a few seconds, shaking, "I can't! Not anymore! I don't know!" little did she know that the reason she couldn't was because every person in the Infirmary with her was experiencing the same emotion as herself; fear for her life.

Elizabeth reached for the girl and suddenly thought better of it, knowing the last thing she would want at this moment, if she were in the same situation, would be to have people crowding round her, "Tia, we're not expecting anything from you. I am _not_ going to put you up against a Wraith ship and ask you to destroy it. We reawakened this city, we alerted the Wraith. Not you. It is _not_ your duty to protect anyone, despite what your people thought."

Tia's shoulders slumped, "…If its what I was…created…for. Then I am duty bound to fulfil my purpose."

"No," John insisted, "You aren't. You're a little girl and it isn't your duty to protect us. We should protect you. And we will."

"…I'm not going to be a 'little girl' for long…" she said softly. She looked mournfully up at Carson, "…Am I?"

Beckett couldn't look her in the eye. He looked away for a moment, glancing everywhere but at her, before he forced himself to reply, "…No."

"Listen to me," Elizabeth moved to sit next to her, across from John, "You're a person, Tia, not a weapon. I don't care what your people were trying to do, or what they thought. I don't care what you can or can't do. We'll deal with things as they happen. But you are _not_ some kind of object, you understand?" she was rather alarmed at how fiercely angry she was at the Ancients and how much she wanted to protect Tia. So much for being detached.

Terentia looked up at her for a moment, eyes narrowing, before she looked back down and hopped off the bed, "…I can sense it…I thought…maybe…" a strangled sob escaped her as she turned away from them, "I'm sorry…" she suddenly ran from the Infirmary, slipping between the doors and away.

"Tia!" John chased her halfway across the Infirmary before he was called back.

"John, don't…" Elizabeth sighed.

"Leave the lass go," Carson agreed, shaking his head at the same time.

"Leave her like that?" he stared at them both, "Just leave her? In that state?"

"…Would you want to be followed?" she questioned, "She ran for a reason."

"She's just a girl. Everyone needs to be alone sometimes. Its not as if we can even offer her answers…" the Doctor added.

"She's just a kid!" John shouted, "You can't leave her like that!"

"And what else can we do?" Elizabeth countered, standing, "We don't know anything! We have to give her some space! We can't answer her questions. How is our looking utterly helpless going to _help_ her? Its not as if we can lie to her. If she's even remotely empathic then she _knows_ when we're lying, we can't just say everything's going to be fine when we all know it _isn't_!"

About to snap a response, he thought better of it. He knew she cared about the girl more than she'd ever admit. And, he reluctantly acknowledged, she was right. They knew next to nothing.

She walked right past him, toward the Infirmary entrance, "I'll find her. But not now. If she wants to be alone, we should respect that," Elizabeth glanced back over her shoulder, "…And with or without her, we may very well lose Atlantis. So I suggest we get back to trying to save our city _without_ the help of an innocent girl," she left the room.

John just stared after her for several seconds. He sighed and shook his head, "Good one, John. So much for helping her," he mumbled.

"Major…" Carson began, "…We still have the whole Atlantis database to decrypt…maybe there's information in there on Tia."

He did a double take as the realisation hit him, "…She's an Ancient…"

"Technically speaking, yes…"

"That means she can use the chair."

* * *

She had lied to the officers on duty to reach one of the piers of the city. Told them Elizabeth had said she was allowed access to all areas. What Tia didn't realise was that she had not only lied, but manipulated the two men into thinking her words were the absolute truth. She stood on the edge of the pier, eyes closed, concentrating, waiting for something to happen. Some surge of energy or some great thunderstorm to take shape that she had created. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Some weapon she was. Terentia had thought, had wanted to believe, for a brief moment that they were lying. That they had been wrong about her from the start. She wasn't one of these Ancients, she was just a child. Those minutes when she had felt nothing from their minds…hopes shattered when she felt the waves of anger from Elizabeth, trying to cover the already anticipated mourning the loss of herself. She tried to accept what they had said; if she was a weapon, so what? She'd technically only been 'alive' a few days. Never mind how many she might have been all those years ago, too young to remember. She didn't even remember being put in the pod she recalled falling out of. Tia opened her eyes and held her hands out in front of her, jaw clenched, trying to force something, anything, to happen. A spark, light, sound, anything would have done, "Why don't I work?" she shouted, furious. A wave crashed against the pier; if the sea had been calm she would have liked to imagine she was the cause. She knew she wasn't. 

"Because you're not a machine," Elizabeth's voice came from behind her.

Terentia sniffed and tried to hold back the tears in her eyes, "…I can't do anything…some guardian I am," she looked back over her shoulder, "…The…Wraith? They're headed here, aren't they?"

"Who told you that?" she demanded.

"I heard other people talking about it. They're all afraid too. They're going about doing whatever they have to do, but they're scared. Like you are…" she hung her head, "…Like I am."

Elizabeth moved to stand beside her, "Everyone's afraid, Tia. Everybody. I'd be more worried if they weren't. It doesn't mean we're doomed or that the end is upon us. It just means we're worried."

"…Do…do they think I can save them?"

"I don't know," she answered honestly, "I don't know. Maybe some do, maybe they don't. But I'm not going to let anybody make you do anything, understand?"

"I can't do anything anyway…"

"And maybe that's for the best," it was John who answered her, "Maybe they made a mistake and its right that you shouldn't protect us," he held out a hand toward Tia, who ran for him and hugged him tightly instead, hiding her face.

A brief moment of hurt passed across Elizabeth's features, realising that maybe he had more of an emotional link with her than she did. But he was more comfortable playing 'dad' than she was playing 'mom', a mother who might very well lose her child. Emotional detachment, remember emotional detachment. Who was she kidding?

"We don't know a lot, I'll give you that," John admitted, "But we've got a database in there that only some of us can crack. You might be able to get into it. You might find your answers there…" he answered Elizabeth's questioning gaze, mouthing the words over Tia's head, "The chair."

She had a sudden image of Atlantis exploding and winced. Just because Terentia couldn't do anything now, didn't mean she wouldn't ever. Didn't mean she might not cause something in the Atlantis systems to react to her presence, a proper Ancient, not just one with a genetic trait. Elizabeth walked up to them and knelt beside Tia, so she could look up at her, "You can access the city's systems…and there might be something more about you. You don't have to do it if you don't want to."

Terentia smiled gently as she looked down, "…I'll do it…" her voice was altogether different, softer and a sudden pulse of golden light was emitted from her body. Her eyes widened, "I work?" her smiled broadened.

Both her guardians smiled, glancing at each other, a silent apology.

John was thankful Tia was still a little small for her supposed 'age' as he picked her up and swung her round, grinning when Elizabeth laughed, "You know what?"

"What?" Terentia giggled.

"I think you're just happy."

And even if it was just for that brief moment, it was worth the pain of knowing what was coming just to see the Ancient child laugh.


	7. Faulty

"Its like a computer. But a computer you have to think you way into, throw commands at it instead of tying, that sort of thing."

Terentia hesitated, "…What's a computer?" she felt rather stupid for asking.

"Ah…" John silently cursed, "Okay, not a good example," he pointed to the small table beside his bed, "That's a computer."

She glanced back over her shoulder from where she was seated, perched cross legged on the end of his bed, whilst he sat on a chair opposite, "…It looks like a box…"

"Believe me, it doesn't behave like one," he muttered, not having a good track record with computers, "Anyway. Not the point. Okay, think of the chair system as a way of having a conversation with somebody who isn't going to talk back. But in your mind."

"Talk to somebody just using my mind?" she blinked, unconvinced.

"Yeah," John nodded, "Its kinda like how you can sense what we're feeling; you're using your mind to access what isn't spoken aloud, right?"

"I guess…"

"You just have to think your way into the system. You'll get access to a lot of the database, maybe more than we do, but you have to concentrate on what you want it to show you and…I don't know…order it to bring it up…"

"How come you can use this system if you were saying only my people could?" Terentia questioned, frowning.

"A lot of us here have a gene that matches one of your people's, it means we can use the technology. We're not really sure what it means, maybe we're descended from your people, we don't know yet," he shrugged.

"Why do you think I'll be able to use this any better than you can?" the question was almost an accusation, and if he didn't know better, John would've thought she were behaving like a normal, stubborn, human teenager.

"We don't. We just hope you will."

"Because you want me to protect the city?"

"No, Tia, we want you to find out about yourself, not protect us," he sighed.

Terentia looked away, "I'll be dead soon. What does it matter?"

John folded his arms and leant back in his chair, "Alright, what's with the attitude, missy?"

"Nothing."

"I could just throw you into the ocean."

"I could just destroy you all in a few seconds," she shot back. The girl's eyes widened and she clamped her hands over her mouth, shaking her head, "…I'm sorry…" she said, voice muffled.

He leant forward again, "What's this all about?"

"I don't know…"

John sighed. He would've stated it was her age and hormones, but knew there was more than just hormones racing through her system.

"But what if I do it? What if I'm just walking along and suddenly 'boom', all gone? You call me an 'Ancient', they call me an 'experiment', Elizabeth calls me a 'child'. And you all call me 'innocent'. What if I'm not? What if I'm not any of these things, what if I'm all of them?"

He then started wondering about her mental age. Earlier, she had seemed mentally young for the age her body had grown to, now she seemed to be catching up, and surpassing it. Was she going through that many changes so quickly, and even as she just sat there? Or maybe she was just confused. He'd seen little children become eloquent when faced with serious situations, or when they sensed them.

"Tia…I can't answer your questions. I'm not an Ancient, I don't know. I'm not gonna lie and say its not a possibility that you could destroy Atlantis. But so could any of us; hit a wrong button and, as you said 'boom'. Your people obviously put a lot of work into creating your life, all I'm saying is that maybe they left something in the database that you can access," John stared at the floor for a moment, "You wanna know something?" he would have considered moderating his language, if she were an ordinary child, "I'm pissed as hell at what they've done to you. So is Elizabeth."

"But that's it. They didn't do this to me, I'm what they created, I'm what they intended. They didn't take a child and do this, they made me and what I am," she insisted. Tia shook her head, "And made me faulty."

John stood up, "Well then, I guess Elizabeth and I can be angry for you too," he exhaled slowly, unable to counter her argument. He held out a hand, "You want to try the chair system?"

Terentia stood up, "…Alright."

* * *

"…I don't like this…" whilst she had initially agreed with the idea, Elizabeth hesitated, seeing Tia standing beside the chair, Carson running another scan on her, "…Its not even as if we can sensor what she sees."

"And then she could pull the same stunt the Doc did and start hurling Ancient weapons into space…" John kept his voice low, "But we need her to do this. And she needs to do it for herself. She might even crack some more of the encryption sequences."

"Well, we only have one plan for the attack so far."

"Which is?"

She met him with an expression that was somewhere between devastated and defiant, "…Destroy Atlantis so they can't access Earth and our galaxy. Evacuate all personnel, set charges and run."

"That's ridiculous."

"I know," Elizabeth sighed, "But what choice do we have? If we stand and fight, we'd lose, simply on numbers. We'd run out of ammunition, our defences would be down, it wouldn't be a battle, it would be a slaughter," she looked up at him, "…Maybe I'm a coward, but I'd rather my people lived than died."

"I spoke to Ford. We've got enough C4 to throw together some pretty powerful explosives, but not enough to even destroy one ship. Flying the jumpers in formation and concentrating fire was an option, but once the Wraith locked on, we'd be screwed," he replied.

"And once the Wraith are in the city…"

"Its hand to hand combat…"

"Its one thing telling somebody to fight for their life, but even with training, non-military personnel will hesitate, even if for a split second, and that could cost them their lives," she set her jaw, "I'm not saying we civilians can't handle it. I'm saying one look in the wrong direction, one double take, and they're gone."

"Hand to hand combat with a Wraith isn't exactly an option either…" John sighed, "Too many extremes. We could have every officer here pouring ammo at them and people who wont even fire a shot and all dead before we can look round."

"Which is why destroying the city is our final, if only, option, after that."

"Everyone will stand and fight, you know that?" he questioned.

She looked away, "I don't want to have to tell them to."

"You won't have to."

"I said we'd fight," Elizabeth looked back at him, "And we will. But when you hear the screams of the dying above the gunfire? Then look me in the eye again and say running was a ridiculous option."

He thought of reaching for her, then thought better of it. It was most likely she would have shrugged him away, standing with every muscle tensed, glancing here and there, as if she expected something to go terribly wrong at any instant. And anyway, at that moment, whatever joint leadership they had going was absent. She was in command of the city and it was she who would blame only herself when the dead were piled at her feet. If she wasn't among them.

"We're ready," Carson's voice jolted them both back to the matter at hand.

Weir stepped up onto the platform to stand beside Terentia, "You don't have to do this, you know. We're not forcing you. You can back out now."

Tia shook her head, "No," she tried a weak smile, "I want to know."

"Nobody'll think anythin' less of ye," Carson offered.

She really smiled across at him, "Its okay. I might not live to see your homeland, but I can at least try and show you more about here."

He nodded, silently, and stepped off the platform, followed by Elizabeth.

Terentia sighed softly before taking in a deep breath. She shut her eyes and sat down in the chair, only to have her eyes shoot back open when the chair activated and jolted backward. An image of the city flickered to life above her, that she stared at with some concern, "…I didn't do that…"

Elizabeth shook her head. The girl looked like a mere doll in a giant play-set, "Its okay, Tia, the system sometimes takes the thoughts at the top of your mind and displays them."

"Oh…"

"You wanna stop?" John called out.

"…No…" she replied. Tia closed her eyes tightly and tried throwing a stream of thoughts at the system, feeling rather stupid, as she could sense no presence other than her own mind, '_Guardian. Atlantis. Experiment. Terentia. Atlantis defence. Ancients. Child.'_

Carson frowned as an image of a young woman appeared on the ceiling above the chair, that swiftly became smaller and overlaid with a stream of text, diagrams accompanying it, layers of coding on top.

Terentia opened her eyes as the image of the woman returned.

"Permission to extract genetic material granted," the woman nodded, "Permission to extract genetic code granted," she vanished beneath the text again, only to be replaced with the image of a male, "Permission to extract genetic material granted. Permission to extract genetic code granted," he stated, rather sternly. The two images were placed side by side as more text scrolled by.

"…I think they're your parents…" Carson offered.

She frowned, "…But I'm an experiment…I don't have parents…"

"You're still the result of a genetic blending of two individuals, regardless of what they did to ye afterward."

"…So…I'm them? I'm a mix of them?"

"Aye, at a guess. If you can allow access to this file, I'll head to the command centre and see if they can save it," he glanced at Elizabeth as if asking permission.

Weir nodded, "Go."

"Can you read any of that?" John asked Tia, as Carson left the room.

"No," Terentia sounded rather disappointed, "Its just a bunch of lines to me."

He looked at Elizabeth, "…Can you?"

She was frowning up at the ceiling, "Some of it. I can just catch words, its scrolling too fast. If they can save it successfully, I'll take a look.

The image of the city appeared again, from different angles, spinning slowly as various areas were pinpointed, text scrolling beside them. Terentia shook her head and closed her eyes again.

"What're you doing, Tia?" Elizabeth took a step toward the platform.

"Tia?" John echoed.

She opened her eyes again as the image of the city grew larger, zooming in. It span again and provided a plan layout, highlighting several spots. The girl smiled slightly, "…I hope that's what I asked it to do…"

He stared up at the plan, as it became more detailed and more, smaller, structure and objects appeared beside it, "…Weapons…"

"Weapons?"

"Weapons."

"Atlantis has weapons we don't know about?"

"In areas of the city we haven't explored yet."

"Other than the drone weapons like in Antarctica?" Elizabeth pressed.

"…I'd say they looked like pretty big guns to me…" a slow smile spread across John's face.

"…I thought…about defence…syst-" the light on the chair platform dimmed as Tia's eyes fell shut and the chair tilted forward again, making her slump forward, unconscious.

John jumped up onto the platform and caught her just before she hit the floor, Elizabeth a second behind him.

"Exhaustion?" she questioned, checking the girl's pulse.

"I don't know," he answered, gathering her into his arms, "I don't know. Nuts to the damn file, we gotta get her-"

"To the Infirmary," Elizabeth finished, heart racing faster than she liked with concern for her charge. She could be just asleep. She could be in a coma. She could be charging up to discharge some form of energy. She could be dying. She could already be brain-dead.

They ran from the room, Atlantis temporarily forgotten, all thoughts on the child born to defend it.


	8. Realism

"What's happening to her?" John demanded, as soon as Carson set foot in the Infirmary. He and Elizabeth had beat him to it, rushing as fast as they could to get Tia some form of medical care.

"I don't know," Carson ran another Ancient device over the still form of the girl on the bed.

"What do you mean you don't know?" John exclaimed.

"I mean I don't know," he repeated, calmly, "She's a mix of technology and Ancient material, anything could be happening in there. She could just be having a non-scheduled nap or she could be on the brink of death, I don't know. Her pulse is steady and she's breathing," he looked up, "You say she passed out?"

Elizabeth nodded, shifting nervously from foot to foot, uncharacteristically, "She lost consciousness after she pulled up some more information about the city's defences from the database. We couldn't wake her then or on the way here."

Carson sighed, "…You know the lass is quite literally a time-bomb? She could wake up, raring to go, and decide every one of us is her enemy. She could decide the best way to defend Atlantis is to destroy it, keep it from its enemies. She's not just a little girl…"

"I know," she snapped. Elizabeth instantly relented, running a hand through her hair, "I'm sorry," her expression softened, "…She's not even that much of a 'little' girl any longer."

"You're saying we need to take measures against her?" John caught on.

The Doctor nodded, reluctantly, "…Aye. You might. None of us know what's going on in any of her systems. She's as much an alien as anything we encounter out there. She may be just a wee child, but ye may have to make some difficult decisions."

"…Why do you think she passed out?"

"I'm not entirely sure. It could be exhaustion. It could be pre-programmed into her. Anything. I'm more inclined to believe that the growth spurts she's going through are becoming more frequent – not just by night, her body will shut down whenever it needs to divert more energy to the changes she goes through. We've just been lucky so far that we send her to get some sleep at the hours we do," Carson abandoned the device and drew the covers up around Terentia, sadly noting how frail she appeared, the baggy clothes she wore only serving to emphasise her fragile state, "…I don't want to introduce anything foreign into her system. She could just be in an incredibly deep sleep that she intentionally cannot be woken from."

It was at that moment that Major Lorne ran into the Infirmary, skidding to an abrupt halt, "…I guess now isn't a good time to say those Hive ships are a hell of a lot closer than we thought, Ma'am?"

Elizabeth gazed wearily back at him, "…Tell me you're joking…"

"I'm afraid not, Ma'am."

John headed out of the Infirmary, "Major, with me," he glanced back at Elizabeth, "I'll deal. You stay with her," he continued on his way.

She cursed herself for becoming so attached to a girl who could save or destroy her city. An all-powerful guardian hidden in the guise of a child. Maybe that was the plan. Maybe she was supposed to be taken into the hearts of those who awakened her. Elizabeth thought to call her thanks out after John, but feared sounding weaker than she already felt. Instead, she let herself trust he knew what the best course of action was. And decide that she could spend an hour by Terentia's side, no more. She barely heard Carson state he was going to examine the most recent test results, and nodded, eyes unfocused, as she pulled up a chair to the child's bedside.

* * *

"What are you talking about, two days?" John nearly shouted across the briefing room, "I thought we had time! Not a lot of time, but more time than two days!" 

"So did I, okay?" McKay shot back. He sighed, exasperated, "It was an echo."

"What was an echo?"

"The trails we picked up, what we eventually thought were ships. They're not. Or they never were," Zelenka joined in, "They're gone. So far, all we can assume is that they were beacons set to travel all that way behind the Hive ships, on the same course, long enough for us to fall for their trick."

"And now they're gone?" John pressed.

"Now they're gone and the Hives have decloaked. They know they're close enough, they know there's little to nothing we can do in two days. Well. Thirty six hours, basically," Rodney snapped, "They know we can't all out attack them. They're taunting us. And they're coming for us."

"Dial Earth," the Major proposed.

"Will use too much power and leave us with nothing to defend ourselves with. We can get nothing from Earth, we don't even know if they have a ZPM. And we don't have one to send through," Zelenka answered.

"The jumpers, C4, the shield," he continued.

"Jumpers would make little impact. And the shield can do nothing but…shield…with our current level of power," Rodney shook his head, "I don't see how we can do it. We have nothing to fight with! What do you intend to do, line people up and have them shoot?"

"Shut up, McKay!" John snapped, "This is not the time!" he began to pace the length of the room, "Tia found some weapons, somewhere in Atlantis, looked like pretty big guns. I guess we need people with the gene to activate them. Or she has to…I don't know."

"The girl," he said softly.

"She has a name! Tia has a name!" John shouted, "She's not just some kid we can throw out there and expect to work miracles!"

"Oh please! You've totally lost your objectivity! She was left here, by them. They left her to protect her city, don't label her a child and take away her purpose, what she was meant to do, just because you don't want to have the death of a girl on your hands!"

"You're crossing lines now, McKay…" he muttered, voice low.

"I'm not crossing any lines, I'm pointing out what you can't see! Her name means guardian. The Ancients made her to protect Atlantis. We have nothing else. We have to evacuate. We have to leave her here," Rodney answered.

"What, just throw her out a window, leave her on one of the piers and hope she saves the city along with her life?"

"Maybe that's what has to be done! Maybe if she thinks she's going to die, whatever power she holds will activate. She's shown no abilities and no affiliation with the city so far! We have nothing, Major! Nothing. And in thirty six hours, those ships are going to destroy this city. We are alone and we have nobody with enough firepower to turn to. She is the guardian of this city. Let her try," McKay insisted.

John shook his head in disbelief, staring at his friend. He hated that he was right. And he hated that they'd lost before they'd even begun. He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, "Well, Rodney, the little girl you expect to save all our lives is currently unconscious in the Infirmary. Think about that for a while, won't you?" he strode from the briefing room, absolutely furious, leaving a stunned silence in his wake.

* * *

It had been barely twenty minutes when John walked back into the Infirmary and moved to stand by Elizabeth's side, "Hey." 

She looked up, "Hey. What's the latest on those ships?"

"According to Rodney, we're screwed."

"…Good to know," she looked back at the figure in the bed, "…I wanted to fight. Is evacuation really our only option?"

"If we want people to live," he mumbled, "If we can find those guns Tia pointed out, maybe we'd have a better chance, but we don't know where they are exactly or how to activate them. We can't call for help from Earth, and that would be useless anyway, unless they had a ZPM to actually send us said help. None of our allies have the firepower to help us. Our enemies would beat the crap out of us just for asking. Unless you're a miracle worker and can broker a brilliant peace and trade treaty in under an hour, which I've heard you can do… Though I have no idea who to try."

Elizabeth's shoulders slouched, "…We have to evacuate…the time we thought we had, we could have done something. Thirty six hours… I don't want to send people to their deaths. I was all for fighting if we stood a chance…but…"

"McKay's all for letting Tia have a shot at it," John interrupted.

She looked up at him again and stared, "She's unconscious. She's just a girl."

"He thinks we're blinded by the fact that she's a child, a child who looks human. He says she's a weapon, a guardian, and should be treated as such."

Elizabeth shook her head, "That's harsh, even for Rodney."

He shifted a little closer to her and looped an arm around her shoulders, "But there speaks the absolute realist…" he said softly.

She leant against him, "…I hate it when he's right…" she whispered.

Terentia stirred, yawning. She blinked several times, focusing, before her gaze rested on the pair at her bedside. She frowned a little, "…Would those people on my file…my parents…have behaved like you?" she asked, voice weak.

John removed his arm from around Elizabeth as they gazed at each other for a long, silent, moment. Elizabeth shifted away a little, confused. She stood, moving as if to answer Tia, then jump back as the girl's eyes rolled back and she began to shake, "Carson!"

Carson was attempting to stop the fit Tia was going through and they were ushered from the Infirmary in a matter of seconds. John and Elizabeth were silent, pacing outside the closed doors, occasionally glancing at each other, never for too long.

When they were finally let back into the Infirmary, a much older girl, possibly in her twenties,with dark hair and eyes, dressed in an infirmary gown, slight gold tint to her skin, stood to greet them.

Carson stood a little way away, frowning.

Elizabeth stared, "…Tia?"

The girl nodded.


	9. All Grown Up

Terentia tilted her head and frowned slightly as the silence in the room went on a little longer than she would have liked. She took a step back, nervous, "…I-I know I'm…different…" she stammered. Her voice and demeanour seemed completely at odds with her new appearance.

Elizabeth forced herself to speak, "Do you feel okay?"

She nodded, silently.

God, she wasn't a child any longer. She didn't even look entirely human anymore. There was a certain quality to her eyes, let alone the shimmer on her skin. There had been a little girl, a little girl in everything but her make-up, in her place only a few days before. And a young teen before them a matter of minutes ago. Was the woman before them really some form of weapon? She was an Ancient. Everything the Ancients had known. The personality they had been dealing with had made her almost completely forget that.

"I, erm, think I'll go back to my bed…" Terentia said.

"Hey, no, wait, Tia," John approached her, "Sorry, we didn't mean to stare," he folded the girl into his arms, a little stunned that she was suddenly so tall.

She returned his embrace before stepping back again, "I don't know what happened," she tried to explain, "Honestly, I don't. I remember using the chair, pain, and not a lot else…" she seemed quite on edge.

Elizabeth finally walked toward her, "You don't have to explain yourself," she mimicked John and drew her into a hug, "Come here."

Tia wrapped her arms around Elizabeth and held onto her tightly, as if she were afraid. She was suddenly almost the same height as her guardian. Even she found the sudden change unnerving. She stepped back from Elizabeth as she had from John, almost as if she knew on some level she wasn't permitted to get so close too them.

"…You're all grown up," John stated, lost for words.

The Ancient nodded, "…I am," she frowned, "…I can still remember little, but…I'm not a useless child any longer. I was created for a purpose and left here for a purpose. You said I was a weapon…"

"Tia, no," Elizabeth started.

"Therefore it must be what I am…" Terentia finished. She stared down at her hands and pulled at a strand of her now much darker hair, brushing it from her eyes. She tried to hide a yawn and failed.

"Sleep," John insisted, a hand at her back to guide her back to her bed.

She didn't fight him. Instead, she clambered almost gratefully into her Infirmary bed and closed her eyes as the covers were drawn around her.

"We'll be speaking with Carson," Elizabeth said, "Rest."

Terentia was already asleep again.

"…Well…that confirms she needs to be unconscious for her growth spurts to occur," Carson said softly from the door of his office, "At least they were merciful in that respect."

"…That really is Tia?" she gestured for John to follow her into the office.

"Aye, that's the girl. Well, woman. Young woman. I have no idea what they were going for with her, she doesn't even look all that human anymore!"

John leant against the back wall, "She looks…"

"Ancient…" Elizabeth finished, "Her body went through all that in a few minutes?"

Carson seemed to wince, "And bloody painful it looked too. I don't know if you heard her screaming…"

"You said she was unconscious," the Major shot back.

"She was, but the lass was still screaming."

John shook his head, "Rodney's going to be all the more for using her as a weapon now. She's not a kid anymore. She, in most people's eyes, will be entitled to make her own decision. And I'm sure some people are good at persuasion around here…"

"She isn't some machine with an 'on' switch!" Elizabeth snapped angrily.

"She isn't human, she isn't a machine, she's not a kid anymore and she's not something to be used!" he answered, nearly shouting, "I know what you're getting at, Elizabeth, but what do you expect me to say? I don't want to make her do anything and I will fight my damned hardest to ensure people don't force her to, but we're running out of options here! We may not have a choice, some programming in her might kick in and then god help us all!"

She narrowed her eyes, studying him for a moment. Elizabeth opened her mouth as if to shout something in return, reprimand him or put him in his place, but she didn't. She just walked out of the office, silently.

Silence was the reaction he hadn't been wanting. He could deal with her shouting at him. Her silences were just so much worse. And meant he had hit home. Had hurt her. John sighed, hitting his head back against the wall, "Strike two, good one John. Strange way of helping you've got going there…" he muttered to himself.

"…She reads almost like we would expect an adult Ancient to," Carson continued as if nothing had occurred, believing it to be for the best, "I still don't know what's going on inside her, but by the looks of her, if she's going to pull grand stunts, I'd say its going to be soon if she gets her way…"

"…What if she's a bomb?"

"Am I right in hearing those Hive ships are closer than we thought?"

"Yeah."

"Then I assume evacuation is one of the first plans. Which is good. Because if it wasn't for the Hive ships, I would say to either send Tia away or to get everyone away from her," Carson said softly.

John's eyes flashed angrily and he moved as if to speak.

"You think I like telling ye this? I want to save that girl's life. If I could fix her, I would. But if she destroys more people, including herself… You know I'm oath bound to save and protect more lives. Do no harm. If my prioritising Tia causes more harm-"

"I know, I know," John mumbled. He paused, "…Is it even possible to take Tia from Atlantis? She could be linked to it. She was part of its systems once, in that pod."

Carson shrugged helplessly, "I can't tell ye."

He looked everywhere but at his friend for several seconds, sighing deeply, "…People are going to die, Carson. Whatever we do."

"…I know."

The feminine voice at the door startled them both, "I understand your concerns," Terentia stood at the door, one hand curled around the frame, "…And I hope you don't find it so deceitful that I implied I wanted sleep-"

"Tia-"

"I'm not a child any longer, you're right," she continued, "I'm not really anything. I'm just a being. If I will cause destruction, then please prevent my being the cause of loss of life that I was not designed to do. I will not leave Atlantis," she stated, "This must be happening to be for a purpose. Even if I'm useless, I'll never find that out until what I was intended to destroy is upon us. So leave," Terentia insisted, "People should leave and I should do my duty, as I am bound. All I ask is that you leave some measures to prevent my enemies gaining control of the city if I'm powerless." She paused, wincing, "Actually, I have one more request," she looked up at John, "Go and talk with Elizabeth. Her pain is…difficult to handle…"

He strode forward and took Tia by the shoulders, "This isn't over," he insisted.

She smiled sadly, "Yes, it is. Go talk to Elizabeth. Please."

John reluctantly left the office, glancing back over his shoulder occasionally, until he was out of sight.

Terentia sagged against the doorframe when she knew John could no longer see her. Her eyes fell shut for a few seconds, until she gazed across the room at Carson.

"You weren't lying about sleep. You're exhausted," Carson stated.

"And too curious to know what everyone thinks of me," she smiled wearily, "All I know is that you've all been very kind to me when I've caused you nothing but trouble. I don't know what's going on. I look and feel older, but I can remember what its like to be a little girl, I can still feel it. I don't really know what I am or what I feel. But I wont leave this city. If having this form, looking like this and speaking in a different way, appearing older, gives me the right to say I wont go, then I'll use everything I've got."

He hated that she was right. That there was still a little girl in there somewhere, lost in the changes she was forced to go through, who was adult enough to know a different performance would bring her rights she wanted. Even if she didn't know why she wanted such rights. Carson shook his head, "You're a sly one…"

Terentia yawned again, and staggered a little, clinging to the doorframe.

"Let's get you back to your bed…" he rushed forward to support her.

Her eyes fell shut again, "…Please…wake me soon. Anything to keep me awake, do anything. I need to show them where those…weapons…are."

* * *

Elizabeth was pacing back and forth on the balcony just off the command centre when John found her. Aside from her office, thankfully it was one of the few places he knew to look for definite. She stopped pacing, only to look him in the eye, and then continued as if he wasn't there at all. 

"I'm sorry," John stated, on realising there was no way he was going to stop her any time soon.

She held up her right hand, pointing at him, "You know, its not even you I'm angry with," she kept pacing.

"Then wh-"

"Fate. Destiny. Time. Space. The galaxy. This galaxy!" Elizabeth spread her arms wide, "The whole universe!" she shouted.

"Eli-"

"It was bad enough thinking we were going to lose Tia. I said I wouldn't get too attached, didn't have the time for her, and what have I done? But, oh no, its not just that. We don't even get to fight. We have to abandon this beautiful city, our city, and yes, we may have to destroy it ourselves. If that isn't Tia's purpose when the Wraith get too close. Any close is too close," Elizabeth continued to ramble, features fixed in stern, angry, lines.

"We could just let you loose on those Hive ships. I think that'd do the job," John dared to try and inject some humour into the situation, hoping to at least redirect her anger at him, where he could deal with it, or to stop her completely. A reluctant smile would have done.

She halted and just stared at him, "…How can you be so calm?"

"Because one of us has to be. I already had my slanging match with Rodney. And now you're entitled to be angry with the universe. For a while," he answered.

Elizabeth sighed, "…How's Tia?"

"Smarter than the thirteen year old we thought we had."

She smiled slightly, "'we had'?"

He smirked, "Whatever way you want to take that."

Elizabeth shook her head, chastising him. She moved to lean against the railings, looking out across the ocean, "…So…we evacuate. We get everyone to safety. We take the control crystal and we hope we one day find some ZPM's to hook up to the Stargate?"

"That looks like it's the plan…" he reluctantly replied.

She smiled sadly and looked back at him, "I thought we were going to do great things here. I thought we were going to explore the galaxy and make a difference."

"We have made a difference," John wandered across the balcony to stand beside her.

"Not enough. And not for long enough."

He looped an arm around her waist, dragging her closer, before he draped the same arm around her shoulders. She started at his touch but settled herself against him all the same.

"What do we do about Tia?" Elizabeth asked, voice quiet.

He sighed, "She wont leave Atlantis. She wants to stay. She's claiming adulthood and telling us to go and leave her."

"I wont do it," she whispered savagely.

"We evacuate. We wait…and we see. If she has any form of power we might not get a choice," John rested his head on hers.

She twisted in his embrace and relaxed against his chest.

"We'll figure something out. As long as everyone's safe. Maybe…we have to let go."

Elizabeth didn't reply. There was letting go…and there was letting go of everything, of too much at once.

"Thank you," she said suddenly.

John frowned and tried to look down at her, "For what?"

"Helping me."

He tightened his arms around her, "…We haven't even got started yet."


	10. Too Little Time

"What're you doing with the girl?" McKay practically chased John down the corridor he was lugging cargo, "Major!"

"Name, Rodney, I keep telling you, she has a name," John called over his shoulder.

"Alright, 'Tia'! What are you doing with Tia?"

"Whatever she wants to do. If she insists on staying, I doubt there's much we could do to stop her," he replied, disapproval clear.

"So you actually agree with me?" Rodney continued to follow him, as they turned to walk into the 'Gate room.

John dropped the crate he was carrying to the floor, thankfully in its place, "No, I don't agree with you. I'm not happy to abandon her here, but if she chooses to, then yeah, it looks like she'll have to stay. And another difference – I'm not expecting miracles."

"I'm not expecting miracles. I'm hoping for what she was designed for," the scientist countered.

"Yeah, well, you know what? Whatever she does, you won't get to see it," he snapped.

"As long as she leaves this city standing-"

"And what about her life?"

Rodney sighed, holding up his hands in defeat, "I want her to live as much as the next person. But she has a purpose. And she knows it. Think of me what you will, coward or otherwise, but I think anyone who knows something has to be done would rather die and know it was done and dusted than live and waste away knowing the chance was lost."

John hesitated, "…Sometimes you're right McKay. Truth is, we aren't gonna find out. We can't exactly ask her if she feels fulfilled after she's dead," he headed back for more cargo.

"Ancients are full of surprises," he muttered, before he left for his lab, ready to pack up more kit.

* * *

Meanwhile, Elizabeth was in her office, handing out orders to the steady flow of people who had been visiting her for the past few hours. She had briefly returned to the Infirmary, before leaving Tia to sleep, trusting Carson to take care of the now Ancient woman. What they could take of the Atlantis database was steadily being downloaded to a separate, fire walled, network. It was due to finish less than an hour before the last of them were due to leave the city. Around a quarter of the staff had already left, to start constructing the temporarily shelters in what they were all tentatively calling their own Alpha Site. In the next few hours, the Athosians were due to be relocated to the planet of their choosing. Teyla had chosen not to remain with them, stating that, as long as she had the address they intended to remain at for a while, she could visit and then make her final decision. If anyone survived. 

She closed her eyes tight shut, trying to rid the burning pain from staring at multiple computer screens for too long. Elizabeth glanced up, blinking to bring the figure before her desk into focus, "Tia!"

"Elizabeth," Terentia smiled slightly. With no time to find any suitably 'fashionable' fitting clothes, she was dressed in grey, baggy, fatigues. She looked down at the pile of cargo in the 'Gate room, people milling about, "You're leaving?"

"I'm afraid so," Elizabeth stood to join her, "…We can't really put up a fight. I can't let people fight knowing they're going to die. We're evacuating," she stared down at the 'Gate room, suddenly unable to look her charge in the eye, "…We're planting explosives all over the city, linked to detonate on command. John told me what you requested…"

"Thank you," Terentia said softly.

"I don't want to leave you here."

"I don't want to leave."

She finally looked across at the Ancient beside her. Elizabeth shook her head when she noted that even the rings of her iris' seemed to glow a soft gold, "…I can't change your mind?"

Terentia smiled, "No. Afraid not. Maybe its programmed into me, maybe I can't leave the city. Perhaps I'm designed to stop all attempts to remove me. Who knows?"

She stared at the floor, "…You have no idea…no idea how hard this is for me. I've always fought to save lives, even before Atlantis. And I look at you and I still see the little girl."

"I still remember calling you Mama-Elizabeth that time."

Elizabeth laughed quietly, "Gave me a shock."

"I know… At that moment I figured you had to be my mother. All the other children were calling out to their mothers and fathers, I heard so many of them shriek 'Mama' and run to their mothers…I just thought you might be mine…"

"I don't want to leave you here, Tia. I don't want to go. It already feels like we're running away and knowing we're just walking out and leaving you to-" she stopped, biting her tongue.

"Die?" Terentia finished, "From what I hear, I'll die either way. If I leave the city I might die. Maybe the Wraith will kill me in the city. Maybe the explosives will get me. And if I don't die now and I continue to age at this rate, how long do I have? A few more days?"

Elizabeth fell absolutely silent.

"Nobody knows what's going to happen. I could be lucky to still be standing here. You protect your people by removing them from the target area. And I protect what I was born to, however that turns out…" Tia smiled again, "I do have one question though…"

"Anything."

"Seriously. Those people on my file. They'd be my parents. And would they have behaved like you and John?"

She stared, almost open-mouthed, at the woman by her side. Elizabeth finally smiled, "…Honestly? I don't know. John and I aren't-"

"But you took on the roles they would have. And they must have been…close…to have a child, right? Or so I understand…" Terentia trailed off, "I know they weren't really parents to me, I know they were just used to create me…but if we were a family…would they have been close, like you and John?"

"…I…" Elizabeth decided to concede defeat, "Yes, I suppose they would have behaved like John and I. Cared for you-"

"And each other…"

"…And each other…" she repeated, "Very much. And hopefully been supportive."

Terentia suddenly hugged her 'mother' tightly to her, "Thank you." She stepped back just as quickly, "Oh, I almost forgot. Those weapons I found whilst I was in that chair? I can show you where they are. And activate them. I think they could overload if they had to…" she hesitated, "…turn them on Atlantis instead of the ships…"

Elizabeth had turned a rather pale shade, "…Alright." She gestured to the comm system hooked round her ear, "…Let me just call John and some of the staff. I think we're going to nee them."

* * *

The next twenty four hours were spent preparing to abandon Atlantis. Even those who had insisted they fight had finally conceded defeat. They couldn't see any way that they could fight and not be wiped out. Some had still sworn to defend the city. Elizabeth had told them they were leaving, even if she had to carry them out in crates herself. Their lives were her responsibility. And even if she didn't want to give in, she knew when to quit. She despised the fact that they had effectively lost before a single shot had been fired, but was sure that feeling would fade when she knew that everyone was still standing, even if the city had fallen. 

Terentia continued to display a more adult persona as the hours went by. She activated the weapons platforms and helped link them to the main system designed to destroy the city. For the most part, she was silent, carrying crates watching the fragments of the copied Atlantis database download onto the computer systems. She didn't seem concerned. Which was concerning it itself.

John demanded that Elizabeth get some sleep when he realised she'd been awake for more than two days straight. He, however, refused to rest, and kept on and on at Carson to give him something to keep him awake for the next few hours. Had it been any other situation, the Doctor wouldn't have obliged. But, for one, he knew that the Major wouldn't shut up or leave him alone until he did. Once he was sure the self destruct systems were fully operational, John moved on to ferrying the Athosians from the mainland. And once he was sure they were 'safe' on the planet of their choosing, mostly not the Atlantis Alpha Site, he found something else to do. And then something else. It was as if he couldn't stop for a moment. Sometimes he shot Terentia worried glances, all she ever did was gaze right back at him, calmly.

Carson eventually tricked John and sedated him for a few hours, just to get him to relax. Tia sat by his bedside, staring into the distance.


	11. Duty Done

They miscalculated by four hours.

The Hive ships entered orbit of the planet and began their attack on the city of Atlantis before the evacuation was complete. Thankfully they were already down to a skeleton crew, with only the head staff remaining, but the fragments of the database hadn't finished downloading. Whilst McKay threw a fit, stating that there was no way the time they had estimated for the ships' arrival could be wrong, it was generally acknowledged that the Wraith must have stepped up their pace, or pulled another trick, making the argument as to whether the calculations were right or wrong null and void.

Terentia stood in the command centre, head tilted, as if listening for something. All eyes were on her. She gazed sadly back at them, shaking her head, "…I'm sorry…" she whispered. She stared at the ground and set her jaw, angry.

McKay disconnected the main drive that was downloading the database and yanked it out of the computer system they had set up. He threw the cables across the floor, clearly agitated, as the noise of energy blasts hitting the weak Atlantis shield increased in volume. Rodney pulled the remaining drives from the system and staked them precarious on the terminal in front of him, before he grabbed Ford by the arm and started to load them into his arms, "These make up the last segment of the download. I don't know if what we've already got will work without these. Protect them with you life."

Aiden almost laughed, "We're losing this city and you're worried about a few hard drives?"

"If you haven't already realised, if we can't dial back here, those hard drives will be all that's left of this city."

"Alright," Elizabeth interrupted, "Enough," she approached what served as the Atlantis DHD system and dialled the 'Gate herself, "Get going. That's an order. We'll be right behind you," she wasn't exactly sure how she managed to keep her voice so calm.

Teyla sighed and gazed out across the room, "…The Ancestors would be greatly saddened to know their city was lost forever…"

"I'm sorry," Tia whispered again.

The Athosian looked back at the Ancient, startled, "I meant nothing more by my statement than the words themselves…" she said softly.

"Rodney, Aiden, Teyla, please," Elizabeth nodded towards the 'Gate, "I want," she stopped, "I need to know you're safe."

Rodney grabbed the last of the equipment around him, "See you at the Alpha site…" he headed off first, nodding in Tia's direction as he passed her.

Teyla embraced the girl as she walked by, "Be safe."

"See you on the other side," Aiden called to his commanders as he left to head for the 'Gate. He offered Tia a wave and strode quickly to catch up with Teyla and McKay.

The trio halted at the 'Gate, glancing back up to the command centre, before they stepped through.

John folded Tia into his arms, "You sure this is what you want?" there was such a loud blast noise around them that he swore he felt the city shake.

"…The shield's nearly gone…" Elizabeth said softly.

Terentia nodded, "Yes…I can't leave. Give me the button to press and I'll destroy the city when you're gone…"

"Tia-"

"Elizabeth," she smiled sadly, looking out over John's shoulder, "Go. I complete what I was made for, in whatever way. I had a life! However short. I had a childhood and I had people who cared for me. This is what I was created for. To save this city in whatever way possible. To protect people, the way you've protected me. Go. Please."

Elizabeth couldn't form a reply. She quickly closed the distance between them all and wrapped her arms around both Tia and John, holding them tightly, "…I'm so sorry…" she uttered.

Terentia didn't hear her. She couldn't even hear the pounding of the weapons against the almost shattered shield. But she could hear voices. Hundreds of thousands of voices.

John was the one to realise something was wrong. It had something to do with the sudden light that poured from her body, a single pulse before the shimmer stained Tia's skin even brighter than it had been before, "…Tia…" he took a tentative step back.

"Oh my god…" Elizabeth whispered, as she gently released the young woman.

"…I can hear them…" she said, voice strangely high, almost as if she were choking.

"Hear who?" he demanded.

"…The Others…" Terentia's eyes glazed over, "I can hear…others…they know me…"

Electrical sparks from the consoles around them made the two Humans jump.

"The shield's gone!" Elizabeth shouted.

"I can hear them…" Tia's form pulsed brightly again and she began to wander away from them.

"Tia… Tia, no," she lunged to stop her, and missed, only thanks to the fact that John held her back. She glared back at him, torn between anger and distress, "Don't," she whispered.

"This is her choice," John kept his voice low, refusing to release her, "Whether we are here or not. Her choice."

"She never had a choice!"

Terentia paced steadily down the steps as the ground shook beneath her feet. She still smiled, as if she could see something nobody else could. Like she had found something wonderful. Her expression still read complete absence. She had a purpose. They were calling to her. They knew everything. They were sorry. They taught her. The Others could never return to Atlantis. They had grown beyond it and now were forbidden to protect their own city. But she still had form. She wasn't bound by the same laws. She could do anything. Stop anything.

"John, no…please, don't let her…" Elizabeth still fought him, voice broken.

He held her firmly in place, "Her choice…"

The Ancient girl halted, swaying slightly in her place, gazing at the Stargate. Suddenly everything came back to her. The Wraith, the ships, the singing of the crystals throughout the city as they were shattered. Another strike. Pain. Terentia's vision focused and her expression became grim. She mentally reached out to the weapons platforms she had found and primed them to fire with an absent thought. Her body shone brighter and brighter as her head snapped back and her eyes fell shut.

"Tia!" Elizabeth shouted, "…Stop…" she quietly pleaded. She's saving your city, a voice in the back of her mind kept repeating. She hated how selfish it sounded.

The weapons fired and a huge burst of energy shot from the 'Gate room of Atlantis, making the two remaining Humans shield their eyes. The drones released from the weapons systems tore through the Hive ships until the following, single blast of energy, shot through their cores to complete the job. Golden energy dissipated, destroying everything it touched.

The display tracking the ships fell dormant.

Silence.

Absolute silence. No shaking. No sparks. No nothing.

Blinking and a little dazed, John and Elizabeth forced themselves to look down at the 'Gate room.

Elizabeth broke from his side, thankful he didn't try and stop her, and slowly walked down the steps. She knelt beside a pile of grey fatigues in the centre of the floor, silently. Numb, she heard footsteps, and looked back to see John at the foot of the steps. She tried to relinquish the grip on the fatigues that she didn't even know she had formed.

John slowly moved to kneel beside her, gently uncurled her fingers, and let the material fall back to the floor. He wrapped his arms around her silently.

Their city was safe.

But Tia was dead.

**Fin**


End file.
